10 Most Influential Cookbooks (according to Sunday Life Magazine)

This is such a great list of cookbooks… I just had to post it.All of the most requested and best loved cookbooks in Australia are represented. These judges certainly know their stuff!

From the Fairfax papers today:

Inspiring cookbooks have played a big part in the rise of Australian cuisine. Nina Karnikowski, of the Sunday Life Magazine asks some of our best-known foodies to nominate the 10 most influential. To read the full article click here.

More than anyone else, Margaret Fulton has been credited as the woman who taught Australians how to cook. Hundreds of thousands of readers have discovered that it is not only Margaret Fulton’s ability to cook, but her talent in imparting her technique and knowledge to others that makes her such a trusted and authoritative kitchen companion.

This new edition of the Margaret Fulton Cookbook is a completely updated reissue of her classic cookbook, first published in 1968.With a smart contemporary design and all new food photographs taken by renowned photographer Geoff Lung, the book is set to reach a new generation of readers and cooks.

The book contains chapters that deal with fish, poultry, meat, vegetables, soups, salads, pasta and rice, desserts and cakes. Both the beginner and the gourmet cook will find recipes especially marked for them: all recipes have been coded according to their degree of difficulty involved and the time it takes to cook the dishes.

There are useful cookery hints on every page and line illustrations will lead readers step by step through techniques.

With over 800 recipes from 16 countries, Charmaine Solomon’s “The Complete Asian Cookbook” is the perfect introduction to the food of Asia. Charmaine Solomon has tried and tested every recipe, ensuring that they are simple to prepare and that every ingredient and every preparation step are explained in easy-to-follow terms.

This classic cookbook, in print for 30 years, ventures into culinary areas that are often overlooked: the sour-hot dishes of Thailand, the Nonya cooking of Singapore and Malaysia, the soul-warming hotpots of Korea; as well as excitingly different dishes from the lands of Burma, Laos and Cambodia.

The must-have cookbook for every Australian kitchen and a fabulous Christmas gift.

The Australian Women’s Weekly is famous for its recipes – they’re simple, they’re elegant and each one is triple-tested in the AWW Test Kitchen, which is your guarantee of success, even if you’re a novice cook.

Here is a collection of the best and most popular recipes from the AWW cookbook range.

There are recipes to save you money, recipes just like your mum made, recipes from Europe and Asia, mega-healthy recipes, super-fast recipes – everything you could possibly want in a cookbook.

In celebration of 10 years in print comes an updated collector’s edition of Bill Granger’s bestselling first cookbook Bill’s Sydney Food.

With new iconic Sydney photography and a fresh design in a new hardback format this title is sure to capture a new audience, tempt die-hard fans who will need a revised copy and prove the perfect gift or souvenir for visitors to Sydney.

Bill’s Sydney Food contains all the must-have recipes from bills original restaurant in inner-city Darlinghurst – the signature scrambled eggs, ricotta hotcakes with honeycomb butter, and even chocolate chip cookies.

Renowned chef David Thompson first went to Thailand by mistake: a holiday plan had to be changed at the last minute and he ended up in Bangkok, where we was seduced by the people, their culture and cuisine. Since that fateful trip more than 25 years ago, Thailand has become his second home.

Working alongside venerable cooks who traced their skills back to the Thai royal palaces, he began to document the traditional recipes and culinary techniques that have been handed down from generation to generation – before they were eroded, altered and modernised beyond all recognition. The result is Thai Food, the most comprehensive account of this ancient and exotic cuisine ever published in English.

David Thompson writes with passion and conviction about a unique style of cooking that he believes to be one of the world’s greatest cuisines. Complemented by Earl Carter’s superb photography, Thai Food captures all aspects of this diverse culinary culture.

The best day of the year for any child is their birthday. And nothing is so eagerly anticipated as their birthday cake. This book is full of spectacular yet simple cakes using luscious, gelato colours that are sure to delight your child on their most important day.

Cakes include gorgeous girly cakes such as a fairy cake with a fairy and a rose trellis, a handbag and a castle with cone towers; and daring cakes for boys, from frangipani board shorts and a baby jumbo jet to a bright red fire engine. There is also a new take on number cakes and animal cakes. Also included are cupcakes, celebration cakes and cakes for the whole family.

Maggie’s Harvest brings together over 350 of Maggie Beer’s signature recipes, detailed descriptions of her favourite ingredients and inspiring accounts of memorable meals with family and friends.

The recipes highlight Maggie’s philosophy of using the freshest and best seasonal produce available in the Barossa Valley South Australia, and treating it simply, allowing the natural flavours to speak for themselves.

Describing herself as a ‘country cook’, Maggie cooks from the heart and is passionate about instilling in others this same confidence – to use recipes as a starting point, and be guided by instinct and personal taste.

This landmark book from one of Australia’s best-loved cooks is essential for anyone with an appreciation of the pleasures of sourcing, cooking and sharing food.

New mouth-wateringly exciting book from Australia′s most famous food writer and a dynamic, bestselling author.

This book will give you the know-how and confidence to create a fabulous meal at short notice. It shows that with a well-stocked pantry and a handful of fresh ingredients, imaginative mealtime solutions are surprisingly easy to throw together.

Each chapter takes a comprehensive look at a pantry basic – its origins, varieties, storage – and at a range of simple ideas for its use, before exploring its application in a range of modern, stylish recipes.

While Donna provides plenty of practical advice, this is nevertheless a beautiful and inspirational book too, combining her simple, contemporary recipes with a unique visual style. This is the ultimate guide to getting your provisions sorted for everyday cookery, for unexpected guests and for special occasions.

It is an essential handbook for every kitchen and, like all of Donna′s previous books, is sure to become a modern kitchen staple.

Greg Malouf is widely admired as one of Australia’s most innovative and influential chefs. His passion for the food of his Lebanese heritage, combined with his extensive travels, have led him to forge a modern Middle Eastern cuisine. Arabesque, co-written with Lucy Malouf, is a much-loved guide to the food of the Middle East. From apricots to cous cous, pomegranates to silverbeet, this book welcomes the stars of Arabic cooking into the modern kitchen with descriptions of the history and the role the ingredients play, information on selecting and using them, and exciting recipes.

The collection of 170 recipes is not slavish to tradition, but rather Greg’s modern takes on the food he has grown up with. Seven-Vegetable Couscous is served with Onion Jam and Green Harissa Broth, and Salmon Kibbeh Nayeh is served with Saffron Yoghurt Cheese. Arabesque is a volume to treasure and a cookbook to read and enjoy while discovering new experiences in the kitchen.

It is a must for anyone interested in new flavours, techniques and culinary history, and is a source of inspiration for professional chefs, keen home cooks and gourmets alike.

About the Contributor

John Purcell (aka Natasha Walker) is the author of The Secret Lives of Emma trilogy published by Random House Australia. The Secret Lives of Emma: Beginnings reached the top ten on the Australian fiction charts and Natasha/John was the tenth highest selling Australian novelist and third highest selling Australian debut author in 2012. The trilogy has since sold over 50,000 copies in print and ebook and has been translated into French and Polish.
John has worked in the book industry for the last twenty years. While still in his twenties he opened John’s Bookshop, a second-hand bookshop in Mosman in which he sat for ten years reading, ranting and writing. Now he is the Head of Product and Chief Buyer at booktopia.com.au.